three-color
Americanadjective
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having or characterized by the use of three colors.
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noting or pertaining to a photomechanical process for making reproductions of paintings, artwork, etc., usually by making three printing plates, each corresponding to a primary color, by the halftone process, and printing superimposed impressions from these plates in three correspondingly colored inks.
Etymology
Origin of three-color
First recorded in 1890–95
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They mulled launching a three-color mix, with red, orange and yellow M&M’s, but the sunset vibes were too strong.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026
During karaoke, someone would deliver a Kings’ Hawaiian three-color pastel Paradise cake.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 14, 2025
The impression it leaves on my mind is a bold, three-color nightmare: the black of night and trees, the white of snow and teeth, and the red of — well, you’ll see.
From New York Times ● Oct. 1, 2022
Color television uses a three-color system in which the screen is covered with equal numbers of red, green, and blue phosphor dots.
From Textbooks ● Aug. 12, 2015
The results, in all cases, are produced from three-color negatives.
From Photogravure by Blaney, Henry R.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
